Safety-grip for package handling tongs



March 20, 1956 p RENNER 2,739,008

SAFETY-GRIP FOR PACKAGE HANDLING TONGS Filed April 11, 1950 ww ma The invention relates to improvements in devices used in handling small cans or packages vertically as from or to shelves by an operator who is slightly more than a'rms length away. Devices of this character are commonly referred to as'long arms, and are usually of a m'odified-lazy-tong construction, being provided with a pair of co-acting arms pivotally connected to each other intermediate their ends, and further connected to a series of compound levers for manual operation. a

The invention further relates "to devices of the aforementioned general description, but more particularly to devices-of this character which are provided-with co- 1 Un ted msmm acting arms having'elements for securing better control in handling small cans or packages, andhas for its objects the provision of improved safcty-grip for package handling tongs whichwill be simple in form, economical to manufacture, and highly efiicient inuse.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

The rearportion 16 of the face wall 14 isprovided integrally with two protruding: studs 17 in spacedcoo'perative relation. The thickened projecting tip portion 15 is provided with a similarly protruding stud-19 in longitudinal alignment with 'saidstuds 17. The body 10 is provided with a pocket 18 extending,longitudinally in;,'

parallel alignment with the fiat backjwall'11,,t here be- 111g an opening 19 into said pocket- -18 at the "rear endly; of said bodies 10 which are constructed to snugly receive 1 either the right arm 20, orthe-left arm 21 in opposed positions, as best shown the pocket 18, are arranged: to fit substantially iaif' tight over the arms 20 and 21. U

in Fig. 4. The bodies 10; having In mounting a body 10 on an.arm 20-21, it is best to insert the end of a cylindrical wire, the length of which is longer than the depth of the pocket 18, and then to insert the free end of one of said arms. By this arrangement the confined air, if any, in the pocket 18 can be readily removed, leaving the arm so inserted to the bottommost part of the pocket 18.

Each of the protruding. studs 17 carried by the face 14 and the stud 19 carried by the projecting. tip 15 are of cylindricalshape and are provided with concave suction cups 22'1'at its top each having a relatively thin brim 23 at its upper outeredge. p A p A conventional package handling tongs shown-in Fig. 1 comprises a pole 24 provided with an .upwardly extending flat shaft 25 terminating with an outwardly and down- 7 7' wardly terminating V-shaped book 26 serving as a means of suspending the tongs 24, and is occasionally used for tilting packages to fall by gravity from a shelf or the i like. On the opposite side of the flat shaft from the The invention consists in the combinations and arrange-.

ments of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

' The invention, will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specifi- I cation and in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a conventional package handling tongs having a pair of inwardly curved opposed arms cooperatively pivoted intermediate their ends, and adapated to be moved into adjacent proximity at the will of an operator; 1

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of an adapter forming a part of each opposed arm;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a cross section of a pair of flexible adapters mounted on opposed arms in spaced relation and illustrating by broken line the perimeters of two cylindrical packages and one rectangular package in position of engagement;

Fig. 5 is a cross-section of the body taken adjacent the pocket opening containing a cylindrical wire accompanied by an arm of the device; and

Fig. 6 is a reduced view of a wire used to accompany an arm into a longitudinal pocket of the device.

A practical embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings and shown in Fig. 2, as curved and mounted on either of the arms 20-21 shown in Fig. 1, and comprises an elongated hollow body 10 substantially rectangular in cross-section, as best shown in Fig. 3 moulded flat from a resilient rubber, having a flat back wall 11, parallel side walls 12 and 13 arranged substantially at right angles thereto, and a relatively heavy face wall 14. The face wall 14 of the body 10 comprises a flat tip portion 15 and a rear portion 16, the fiat tip portion 15 being substantially on a plane of the are shown forming the rear portion 16 of the face wall 14. The tip portion 15 is formed by providing the face surface or wall 14 with an inwardly extending protuberance which provides the rounded shoulder 15a at its inner end tudinally of said pole hook 26 a pair of arms 20 and 21 are pivotally mounted adjacent their innermost ends in crossed position onv a rivet 27 serving as a fulcrum.

Each of the arms 20 and 21 is pivoted at its inner end to a pair of tie members 28 and 29 which are pivoted to each other and to a draw shaft 30 mounted longi- 24. The pole 24 is equipped with a hand lever 31 arranged and adapted to reciprocate the longitudinal shaft 30, which in turn will move the parallel bars 28 and 2? to open or closed position. The free ends of the arms 20 and 21 are thereby moved inwardly and upwardly carrying the bodies 10 into contact engagement with opposite sides of the package to be moved.

To arrange a conventional long arm lazy tongs for use, one of the bodies 10 is mounted on each of the arms 20 and 21 with the face of each in opposed relation with the other whereby the face walls 14 of the adapter are brought in contact with the outer surface of the package.

, If the package is a flat paper carton it is advisable to use the fiat tip 15 end of the face 14 in contact to avoid crushing or puncturing the surface. The curved part of the faces 14 is better adapted to engage round packages. The bodies 10 which are rectangular in cross-section, as best shown in Fig. 2, having inwardly facing substantially right angle corners 8--8 which swing in a limited rotary motion on the pivot 9 shown in Fig. 1, due to noted that the bodies 10 are of flexible material and conform to the general shape of the said arms 20 and 21, but difference in shape may necessitate the use of a suitable cement on the inner wall of the pocket 18 to prevent stretching.

When the suction cups 17, 22 are used for gripping a package as indicated in broken lines in Fig. 4, it will be apparent that the shouldered inner ends 15:: of the tips 15 provide abutments which are aligned with one another and which will serve to intercept a package should it be momentarily disengaged from the elements 17, 22. Also, the tip portions 15 with their suction cup carrying abutments 19, 22 serve to enable a square or 2,739,008 Patented Mar. 20,

it is here to be are in this group.

fiat sidedpackage to'be gripped effectively Without the possibility of. the cornersthereof being bent or broken of the package goods are put upin' thin cardboard com tainers, light in weight and become fragile'with age. It

is necessarythat these containers be handled gently or the article becomes unsalable; dry cereals and mixed flours It-is to be noted that the end portion 15 serves the purpose-well iii-limiting such accidents It is well to note also that this portion 15 is provided with'square' edges 8 and a rear wall 15a.

While I have illustrated and described in detail a form of this invention, which is capable of modifications and arrangements of parts, I therefore do not wish to be limited to the specific structure shown but desire to avail myself of such structures and arrangements as may fall within the spirit and scope of the following claim.

I claim:

A gripping device adapted to be used in opposed pairs upon a pair of jaws curved at their outer ends and adapted for simultaneous convergence on opposed sides of a packaged article for the lifting thereof, each said gripping device comprising a flexible resilient elongated holloW body open-at one-endonly to receive the said jaws,

a thin flexible back wall on said body, a front wall having a wedge-shaped terminal portion, said front wall thereby having two angularly disposed planar surfaces, the surface on said wedge-shaped front wall portion being of relatively small area as compared to the area of the other of said two' planarsurfaces, a plurality of vacuum suction cups integralwith said larger planarsur face and a single vacuum cup integral with the'sm'aller planar surface, the said'single, vacuum cups on opposed pairs being adapted to be brought into register by the convergence of said jaws, whereby inadvertent piercing of the package wall is avoided while assuring a secure grip on said package by the said jaws alone.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

